The blog of a Cuban who became an Eastern Orthodox priest.
Recently I wrote an article on the similarity between the Calvinist doctrine of the Perseverance of the Saints and the Orthodox doctrine of the ability to lose one's salvation. In either case, the emphasis is on the idea that a Christian is one who … [Continue reading]
There have been lots of news for the last several years of both law enforcement officers being killed and law enforcement officers inappropriately killing civilians. If you were to watch any, and all, of the cable news, you would say that the rate of … [Continue reading]
“However, the report went around concerning Him all the more; and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by Him of their infirmities. So, He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed,” (Luke 5:15-16). There are many … [Continue reading]
If you cannot preach like Peter, if you cannot pray like Paul, you can tell the love of Jesus and say, "He died for all." -- Hymn, There Is A Balm in Gilead "Love can be sacrificial, and in so doing, it becomes redemptive." -- Bishop Michael Bruce … [Continue reading]
The term "once saved always saved" is used frequently among various--but not all--Evangelicals in English-speaking countries. The concept, however, is treated in one of two ways. While the Orthodox would agree with neither way, it may surprise you to … [Continue reading]
I just watched the opening of the USA Embassy in Jerusalem. It is a move with which I agree. I am not the only socially progressive person to also agree. I listened with interest to a Congressman who is a Bernie Sanders backer who also agreed with … [Continue reading]
The Opposite of War is Not Peace -- What the Orthodox Byzantines retained was an older Greek notion that war inevitably damages the soul. Even in a just cause, in self-defense or to protect innocents, participation in war still harms the soul in some … [Continue reading]
For the Fallen by Laurence Binyon With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children, England mourns for her dead across the sea. Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit, Fallen in the cause of the free. Solemn the drums thrill; Death … [Continue reading]
“The birth of Isaac was, of course, an absolute absurdity. The notion that a 100-year-old man and his 90-year-old wife, who have never had a child in the course of their long married life, should bear a son, and to place the hopes of the whole future … [Continue reading]
The video above made me laugh quite a lot. Though there is some exaggeration, in that Jesus is unlikely to have been black, nevertheless, it is true that Jesus' skin color would not have been northern European white. In 2015, a forensic … [Continue reading]
